Soap holders



y 3, 1969 P. L. HEBERLING 2,934,852

' SOAP HOLDERS Filed June 20, 1958 373/ FPaZ [NV ENT OR 1:) 4 Pea/V L fleer/my ATTORNEY SOAP HGLDERS Pearl L. Heberling, St. Paul, Minn.

Application June 20, 1958, Serial No. 743,337

1 Claim. (Cl. 45--28) This invention relates to an improvement in soap holders and deals particularly with an apparatus for holding a piece of soap out of contact with the wash basin, bathtub or the like either by standing the holder on a flat surface or suspending the holder from a support, the holder remaining attached to the soap While the soap isbeing used, thereby eliminating the necessity of inserting the soap into, or removing it from, another receptacle.

Many different types of holders have been made for supporting bars of soap. Most of these holders are in the form of soap dishes into which the bars of soap may be placed and which hold the major portion of the bar in spaced relation to the base so that air can circulate about the bar and evaporate the moisture thereon. While such soap dishes have been used for many years, they must be cleaned frequently due to the fact that the soft soap tends to rub off on the receptacle and collect on the portions of the receptacles which engage the soap. In many instances, the Water from the soap will drain down into the dishes causing pools of soft soap and water in them. If the soap receptacles are perforated so that the water can drain from them, the soapy water will gather on the surface which supports the soap dish. It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel means of supporting a bar of soap which does not have most of these previous difliculties.

A feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a support including a base of relatively small size having an upwardly projecting shank thereupon. In preferred form, this shank is threaded or grooved so that it can be threaded through the bar of soap. Also, in preferred form, a cap is provided which engages the upper end of the threaded shank so as to provide a smooth surface so that the soap can be used on the surface of the hands or body while the holder is attached.

A feature of the present invention lies in the provision of a soap holder having a relatively small base which supports the major portion of the bar of soap exposed to the air so that the surface of the soap will quickly dry when not in use. In preferred form, the upper surface of the base is provided with a slightly convex surface so that water which does drain from the base will not collect between the base and the bar of soap.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a soap holder which, in preferred form, may be attached to a supporting string. This string or cord, which is of a type which will withstand the effects of moisture, may be used to suspend the bar of soap from a hook or other fixture where it is in convenient position for use.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the fact that the cap is so constructed that it may be tightened down as the soap is used to compensate for the dwindling size of the soap bar as it is used.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a soap holder which may be suspended in a bath tub either from the plumbing fixtures or from a hook supported to the wall of the tub by a suction cup or the I 2,934,852 Patented May 3, 1960 like. In view of the novelty of the arrangement, children as wellas adults enjoy using the soap due to its novel method of support.

A feature of a modified form of construction resides in the fact that the holder may be used with a bar of soap having a preformed hole extending through the center of the bar. Obviously, this arrangement has the disadvantage that the soap used must be specially made for the purpose.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the fact that a simplified form of construction of holder may be used where it is just desired to support the soap upon a flat surface. In this arrangement, the base is provided with a short threaded shank projecting upwardly therefrom which may be threaded into the center of the bar of soap to support the same. This style of construction has the disadvantage that the end of the shank will be exposed when the major portion of the soap has been used but at this point, bars of soap are often discarded in favor of a fresh cake.

These and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claim.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification:

"Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cake of soap having my soap holder attached thereto.

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view through a bar of soa and through the holder showing the general arrangement of parts therein.

Figure 3 is a sectional view of a modified form of holder construction.

Figure 4 is a sectional view through still another modiii'ed form of soap holder.

i The soap holder is illustrated in general by the letter A and is used to support a cake or bar of soap B. The soap B illustrated is generally square in outline, although this is not important as the holder is equally well adapted to support bars of soap which are generally oval in outline, as well as more elongated bars which aregenerally rectangular in outline.

As illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawings, the holder includes a base 10 preferably having a slightly convex upper surface 11. The under surface of the base is provided with a downwardly projecting supporting ring 12 about its periphery or the bottom of the base is preferably slightly concave as indicated at 13.

An externally threaded shank 14 similar in outer shape to a Wood screw or the like projects upwardly from the center of the base 10. The threads on the outer surface of the shank 14 permit the shank to be threaded directly through the bar of soap B. The shank 14 is preferably of sufficient length to project slightly from the soap cake when inserted.

A cap is provided for engagement with the upper surface of the threaded shank 14. The cap is indicated in general by the numeral 15 and includes a disc portion 16 preferably having a sightly convex under surface 17 designed to engage the upper surface of the soap bar B. A slight downward bulge 19 is provided at the center of the disc and this downward projection may, if desired, be roughened or toothed so as to dig down into the bar of soap around the threaded shank 14. The cap 15 also includes an upwardly projecting shank portion 20. A socket 21 is provided extending through the downwardly bulged portion 19 and extending upwardly into the shank 20. This socket 21 is internally threaded for engagement with the threaded shank 14.

As indicated in the drawings, the shank 20 is provided with an aperture 22 therethrough near its upper extremity. A cord formed of a material resistant to water is indicated at 23 threaded through the aperture 22 and attached at its opposite end to a supporting ring 24.

Thus, it Will be seen that the soap cake B may be supported either upon the flat base which may rest upon a flat surface or may be suspended from a hook or suitable fixture or bracket. When supported by the base 10, the convex upper surface of the base permits any moisture which drains from the cake of soap to drain down the surface of the base. However, in most instances, no drainage Occurs due to the fact that the cake of soap is comewhat absorbent and due to the fact that the major portion of the surface of the bar is open to atmosphere where the moisture may quickly dry. Due to the fact that the bar of soap does not come into contact with the supporting surface on which the base is placed, the tendency for the soft outer portion of the soap cake to rub off is eliminated. The same advantages are normally also true if the soap cake, is suspended by the cord or loop 23, 2,4.

In Figure 3 of the drawings, I disclose a modified form of construction including a holder C which is employed to support a bar ofsoap D. In this instance, the bar of soap D is. provided with a central aperture 25 extending through the bar for accommodation of the holder.

The holder C is very similar to the holder previously described including a disc-like base 26 having a slightly concave upper surface 27 and provided with a slightly concave under surface 29. A threaded shank 30 extends upwardly from the base 26. This shank is used in conjunction with a cap which is indicated in general by the numeral 31.

The cap 31 includes a disc 32 preferably having a slightly concave under surface 33 and having an internally threaded sleeve 34 extending downwardly from its under surface. This sleeve 34 is threaded to accommodate the shank 30 so that the two parts may be threaded together. The internally threaded socket 35 in the sleeve 34 is of suflicient length so that the cap may be threaded toward the base as the cake of soap dwindles in size.

The cap 31 includes an upwardly projecting shank 36 into which the socket 35 .extends, and an aperture 37 is provided at the upper end of the shank designed to accommodate the cord 33 or similar flexible support.

In Figure 4 of the drawings I disclose a simplified form of construction which is indicated in general by the letter B. The support E is very similar to the base portion of the holder A. This holder E includes a disc-like base 39 having a convex upper surface 40 and preferably having a slightly concave under surface 41. A threaded shank 42 extends upwardly from the base 39 and may be threaded directly into the bar of soap B near the center thereof.

This type of holder does not embody the cap and accordingly is not adapted to be suspended by a cord but does have the advantage of eifectively supporting the cake of soap B out of contact with a supporting surface while leaving the major portion of the bar exposed to the air so that moisture will quickly dry. In addition to the various other advantages, it should be noted that in each case, the base of the holder is small in size and thus the cake of soap may be properly supported upon a relatively small surface. Furthermore, due to the fact that the base is not as slippery as the surface of the soap bar to which it is secured, the base may be placed upon a slightly sloping or inclined surface which cannot normally be used to support the cake of soap due to its tendency to slide from the surface. The holder is preferably made of plastic or similar material and may be made in various colors to fit the colors employed in the bathroom. Furthermore, where desired, different colored holders may be used on difierent cakes of soap so that each member of the family may have an individual bar of soap.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described the principles of construction and operation of my improvement in soap holders, and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that changes may be made within the scope of the following claim without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

A soap holder including a disc like base having a slightly convex upper surface, a short downwardly projecting peripheral flange-in said base, a threaded shank projecting upwardly from said base axially thereof, a cap having an internally threaded socket and an encircling flange havinga slightly convex under surface, an upwardly extending tapered shank having a transverse opening therethrough extending axially from said flange, said threaded shank and socket being designed to provide inward adjustment of said cap relative to said base as the soap is dissolved.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,111,456 Markle March 15, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS 310,752 Great Britain May 2, 1929 312,118 Switzerland Feb. 29, 1956 499,602 France Nov. 24, 1919 

